Mark studied documentary filmmaking at New York University under renowned documentarian George Stoney. He traveled extensively through East Germany during the period leading up to the fall of the Berlin Wall. During that time, he met his future wife (Producer Gabriele Hayes) hitchhiking. They were married but were not permitted to leave East Germany until the fall of the wall in 1989. He has directed several documentaries related to the Cold War, which have aired on public television in the US, Europe and Australia.

Mark has also taught screenwriting at Southern Methodist University in Dallas.